- In case you may have missed it somehow, Governor DeWine told the whole world over the weekend that Ohio’s school year may already be over. (AP, via Elyria Chronicle, 3/15/20)
- Except for that one little room you keep seeing on TV, state government is pretty well on hold too. That includes the General Assembly—for all intents and purposes—which Gongwer is quick to remind us set itself an April 1 deadline to pass any changes to the state’s EdChoice Scholarship voucher program. Otherwise, as it stands now, the current law as written will likely go into effect. (Gongwer Ohio, 3/13/20)
- State Superintendent Paolo DeMaria says Ohio education is in “uncharted territory” these days. See Item #1, above, for proof of that. And who am I to argue? (Gongwer Ohio, 3/13/30)
- It seems that most of what traditional schools will be doing during the break is serving as centers for distribution of vital food for kids and families. That is awesome. Otherwise, the primary mission of schools (educating kids), is not going to happen much and will likely dwindle to nothing the longer the closure goes on. Except for educational outlets who are already set up for that, says this commentary from India. (DevDiscourse, 3/16/20) Speaking of worldwide trends, the title of this little number is “Virtual Schools Market is Booming Worldwide, Latest Study Reveals”. Sounds about right. (OpenPR, 3/16/20) In case you were wondering whether the above information is of concern in certain Ohio punditry circles (you know who I mean), check out this blog post. Ostensibly, the message here is that traditional schools in Ohio will figure out virtual learning on their own (thank you very much), but the majority of its content is dedicated to keeping parents from considering any of the existing virtual education options already extant in the Buckeye State. That feels like a losing battle to me at this juncture. But here we are. (10th Period blog, 3/13/20)
- There’s still an election being held in Ohio tomorrow, and ballots across the state include a number of school levies. This piece looks at the levy in Cleveland Heights-University Heights City Schools, the need for which was heavily sold on the drain on the district’s finances from
tons of students leaving for private schools viaEdChoice vouchers. With the uncertainty over voucher legislation ongoing (see Item #2 above), district officials are offering some novel assurances regarding collection of the tax should it pass. “Uncharted territory” indeed. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 3/14/20)
- In pre-Station Eleven news, findings of a new, second study of the ASAP program (that is, Accelerated Study in Associate Programs) are in, and they remain very positive. ASAP is a support effort aimed at sweeping away the various barriers to completion evidenced by community college students. It was developed in the City University of New York system and then transplanted to three Ohio community colleges, where it has been extensively studied and showed large, statistically significant impacts on persistence and completion. Good stuff. (Straight Talk on Evidence, 3/13/20) The PD’s editorial board members, clearly divided on the topic, each gave their individual response to the recent announcement of passing rates on Ohio’s state exams being set at “less-than-proficient”. Fascinating perspectives and responses. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 3/14/20)
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